Devil with Human Blood
by bluegalx
Summary: A very young Inu-Yasha is forced to face brutality for what he is


Woooooo! My first Inu-Yasha fanfic about Inu-Yasha! There are far to few fics about Inu-Yasha's childhood, and that's why this was written. This story has been in the works _way_ to long for only 8 pages. But it's done now and I'm proud. Next on my list, I'm going to try to do an Inu/Kag or Mir/San, but I'm having trouble coming up with a plot that hasn't been done a thousand times over.

All reviews will be greatly appreciated, except flames, but go ahead and give me them if you want, they always make life just a little more interesting.

And so, without further ado...

Devil with Human Blood

Up. _Bounce_. Down. Up. _Bounce_. Down. The repetitive action would seem boring to any adult, but the small boy, who looked about eight years old, could be entertained for a good amount of time. Besides, the ball was one of his favorite toys, it had been a birthday present from his mother, Izayoi. Happily he bounced the ball behind the hut where he and his mother lived.

Although not bored, the boy felt somewhat lonely bouncing the ball by himself. He wanted to be out playing with the other boys, exploring the forest, playing games, but he couldn't.

Inu-Yasha was a half-demon. His mother had explained it to him before, but the young boy didn't fully understand. All he knew was that he couldn't go outside of the area surrounding the hut without his mother. It was because the villagers didn't like him, why was still a mystery to the hanyou. Every time Inu-Yasha and his mother went into the village people stopped and stared at the two. Some would shoot the dirtiest of looks, and others looked fearful upon the little half-demon. Mothers would hold their children closer, and in response Izayoi did the same, as if to prove that she and her son were not aliens, but this method never worked. Bravely, Izayoi would approach the food stand, pick up her groceries and hand them to the stand's owner, ignoring his icy stare. Often she would be forced to haggle with the man for a fair price, as he always tried to cheat her. Then Izayoi and her son would retreat back to their hut, repeating the same process each time they needed some food.

"This is _not _a good idea, Kenji!" the boy warned his friend as they walked down the path. Kenji, who was walking a little bit ahead, turned around and rolled his eyes.

"Nothing's gonna happen! By the time he realizes we've tricked him the adults will have him!" the other replied.

"Yeah, but..."

"Kenji's right Takeo, nothings gonna happen!" added a third boy.

"I know Tadashi!" Takeo responded with a sigh "Kenji isn't speaking another language, I know what he's saying!"

"Besides, that half-demon is bad, did you hear what the adults were saying?" Kenji asked, and Takeo nodded.

"I heard Akira's dad say that he's had bad luck ever since that half-breed came here"

"Everyone in the village has" Tadashi remarked "and they say that the night before Leiko-san was supposed to give birth, _he_ cast a demon spell on her and that's why she miscarried!"

"Demon's can't make women miscarry, Tadashi" Takeo replied.

"Exactly, they can do worse!" Kenji announced. Tadashi nodded enthusiastically, while Takeo merely continued walking. The three were silent for the rest of the way down the road, until Kenji motioned for them to stop. He ducked behind a small boulder, and the other boys followed. He put his index finger over his lips to tell them to be quiet, and then peeked over the rock, as the other two did afterwards. They were on the side of a small hill, and below them they could see the dirt path they had been walking on earlier leading to a small, run-down hut. To the side of the hut was a woman, bending over a bucket of water, and scrubbing a red piece of cloth.

"Is that its mother?" Tadashi whispered.

"Yeah, we'll have to steer clear of her" Kenji answered, and then lowered his whole body behind the boulder. Takeo sighed as he sat on the dry grass.

"Why are we doing this again?" he asked.

"Because" Kenji said "we need to capture him! Everyone knows the half-breed is bad, but the adults won't do anything about him because Himoto's family keep's saying that he 'hasn't done anything'"

"They're so stupid" Tadashi interjected and Takeo rolled his eyes.

"Anyway, we're gonna get that little demon in trouble!" Takeo raised an eyebrow.

"And..."

"And then Himoto's family will be proven wrong and the adults will go after them."

"But if _we're_ the ones who tell him to-"

"We're only gonna tell him to do what we know he'd do" Kenji snapped "Now here's how it works..."

Inu-Yasha sat on the grass, spinning the ball around lazily with one finger. He wanted desperately for someone to play with, but his mother was busy and there was no one else.

His dog-like ears twitched. Inu-Yasha looked up and his mouth hung open a little as he saw three boys approaching, each with a strange smile on their face.

"Hi" one of them said.

"Hi" the half-demon responded meekly, taken aback by the fact that they did not appear to hate or fear him.

"So" the same boy continued "You're..."

"Inu-Yasha"

"Well I'm Kenji, and that's Tadashi" he pointed the one farthest from him "and this is Takeo." Inu-Yasha took a quick liking to Takeo, although he could not quite place why.

"Are you from the village?"

"Yep!" Kenji answered "hey, how'd you like to come into the village with us? Ya know, just hang out and stuff" Inu-Yasha cocked his head. Their proposal was too good to be true, could they actually want to be friends with him? And although he was a little wary, the chance to have friends was something that he could not pass up.

"Well... yeah, sure!" the hanyou said. Kenji turned to his friends and grinned.

"Okay, then come on!" he said.

"Wait, shouldn't I tell my mama?" Inu-Yasha asked, and Kenji shook his head.

"Naw, all the kids go into the village all the time, she'll be fine with it!"

"Okay!" Inu-Yasha smiled. He stood up and tossed the ball into the open door of the hut. The older boys started walking and he followed them. Kenji walked ahead, as if leading them, and Tadashi moved near him. Inu-Yasha stayed near Takeo, who was a foot or so behind.

"So, you live with you're mom?" Takeo asked the younger boy as an attempt to stimulate conversation.

"Uh-huh"

"And what about you're dad?"

"I don't remember" he replied simply.

"Nothing at all?" Inu-Yasha shook his head.

"Oh" No one spoke again until Kenji announced that they had reached their destination.

"This way guys!" he said and led the others away from the main areas of the village, instead taking seldom-used paths behind huts where they would not be seen. Finally, they stopped in narrow alley between two buildings. Kenji leaned against one wall.

"So, what d'you guys wanna do?"

"I dunno" Tadashi replied "what about you two?" Inu-Yasha shrugged and Takeo didn't reply.

"Hey! Look, it's Kentaro-dono!" Kenji exclaimed, and pointed to a man walking in the street adjacent to them. He was dressed finely for the poor village, with a dagger by his side. His graying hairs were pulled back tightly and his face was serious.

"The old merchant?" Tadashi questioned and the other nodded.

"Yeah, and it looks like he's prepared for a shopping spree judging by the size of his wallet!" Takeo looked at Kenji.

"So..."

"Hey, anyone wanna nab it?"

"What?" Inu-Yasha looked at him in surprise.

"Don't worry" Kenji said with a chuckle "We do it all the time just for the fun of it, and we always give it back. It's like a game, and Kentaro-dono doesn't mind at all"

"He doesn't mind his wallet being stolen?" Takeo muttered, but the others didn't hear him.

"Hey, you want a shot at it, Inu-Yasha?" Kenji asked with a grin.

"Well, I guess so..."

"Okay! We'll be here. Once you take it, run through the street and see how long you can go before he catches you. If you can make it to the end of the village, you win"

"Okay" the hanyou said and slowly approached the samurai.

"This is gonna be great!" Kenji said as he watched Inu-Yasha

"Yeah! That demon creep will get his!" Tadashi agreed "Right Ta- hey Takeo, where're you going?" the boy called, but Takeo was didn't answer. He ran at top speed away from the village, along the dirt road until he saw Inu-Yasha's lonely hut.

"Hey!" he called, seeing the hanyou's mother, still outside cleaning "Hey miss!" The woman looked up in surprise to see the boy running towards her.

"What- who are you?" she questioned. Takeo stopped and rested his hands on his knees while he caught his breath.

"Ma'am, I think your son is in trouble!"

Inu-Yasha covered his arms over his face to protect it from the blows. He was curled up against a wooden wall, trying to protect himself from the village men and the samurai who, albeit his age, could still punch like he could in his youth. Inu-Yasha didn't understand. Why would the men attack him when Kenji had said that they wouldn't mind? Unless, of course if Kenji had lied, but why would he...

"Because you are a half-demon" Inu-Yasha remembered his mother explaining to him why they were outcasts. The hanyou buried his head as he felt a few warm tears soak through his kimono.

"You filthy little demon scum!" he heard a man shout.

"This'll teach you to steal again!" another said and Inu-Yasha felt a sharp blow on the shoulder by a hard piece of wood.

"Your kind should be extinct!" Inu-Yasha's tears grew as he felt his skin breaking from the most recent hit. He wanted to get smaller, to hide, to disappear. His body tensed as he tried to become invisible, but all that happened were more insults and painful blows.

"S-stop..." he said, but his voice was so cracked and weak that it was impossible to hear. Again he tried to disappear, but still it failed. The blows continued, each one hurting a little more, and the insults continued, each hurting a little more.

"You rat!" Punch.

"Hellspawn!" Kick.

"I don't know why we allowed you to live!"

Inu-Yasha's knuckles cracked. He felt a surge of energy rushing through his body. He looked up at the villagers and leaped. In a flash he was on the ground again, facing the men, one whose arm was bleeding from two wide cuts.

"What the hell- those, those look like they were made by _claws_!" a man exclaimed. There was no response, as everyone seemed to turn and face the small half-demon standing before them. His hand was covered in blood.

Inu-Yasha was surprised. He had never fought humans before, and he had never known himself to have that power. He looked in partial amazement at the man's arm, taking in the knowledge of what he was capable of.

The villagers stared at him contemptuously, looking every second as if they were ready to attack him again, but they didn't move. Inu-Yasha gulped.

"Go away" he said, an odd firmness in his voice "Leave me alone." No one moved, no one spoke,

"Please go away..."

"Inu-Yasha!" hanyou turned, as did the others, to the woman who now appeared, his mother.

"Inu-Yasha- wha-?" she looked at her son, bruised and tear stricken with blood covering his hand, and at the villagers, armed with planks, stones and fists, and one who was clutching his bleeding arm.

"What happened?!" Izayoi demanded, rushing to her son, but Kentaro blocked her path.

"You're little creature robbed me"

"My little cre- What do you mean by that?!"

"Exactly what I said. He stole my wallet" Izayoi's eyes went to her son, who shook his head.

"So because of _that_ you needed to..." she was at a loss for words, and simply gestured towards the scene.

"Hey!" a villager wearing a worn red kimono stepped forward "look what he did to Shiro!" he pointed to the man whose arm had been cut. Izayoi snorted.

"In his other hand he has a club" she pointed out "Which I'm sure was swung with the intent to harm my son"

"So he is harmed" Kentaro said "he is a half-demon, he will heal" Izayoi gave him an icy glare.

"So won't Shiro over there heal? It's only a flesh wound, nothing serious" saying that, Izayoi walked to Inu-Yasha, strutting almost as if to show everyone that she was not lesser then anyone else. Her heart nearly broke as she saw her son, he was shaking. Izayoi knelt to his level and stroked his cheek.

"Mama..." the boy said, his voice cracking. His mother smiled reassuringly.

"It's okay" she whispered and picked him up gently. All of the villagers were watching them as she carried him, but no one spoke and no one moved, probably turned off by the threatening stare Izayoi was emitting.

Inu-Yasha lay on the straw mat that had always served as his bed. Izayoi had treated his wounds as best she could and was busy cooking dinner. Upon his mother's request, Inu-Yasha had told her what had happened, and Izayoi had enforced that he was never to go anywhere without her knowledge.

"In fact, you're never to go into that village again"

"Why Mama?"

"Because we're leaving as soon as we can!"

That had been the conversation earlier. Inu-Yasha couldn't say that he was sad about leaving. The only friendliness anyone had ever shown him had turned out to be _very_ insincere. The hanyou rolled onto his side and pulled the blanket up over his shoulder.

"Mama" he called softly, wanting her to come, although he wasn't sure if she heard him.

"Inu-Yasha?" Izayoi answered. He was standing in the entranceway, carrying a pot. Her son looked up.

"Mama, where we live next, will they hate me there too?" he asked. Izayoi didn't answer, instead she set the pot down and approached the mat.

"I don't know" she said with a sigh, stroking his hair "Hopefully they won't, but people aren't always very accepting"

"Mama?"

"Yes?"

"Before you came I- that man, I hurt his arm." Inu-Yasha said, hoping for some sort of explanation.

"Yes, with you're powers" Izayoi replied.

"My powers?"

"Of course, being a half-demon has its perks too" Inu-Yasha looked at his hands.

"Mama, could I... could I...kill?" There was a strange kind of fear in Inu-Yasha's voice, he was afraid of hearing a "yes" and of hearing a "no". Izayoi paused.

"...Yes" he said, unsure if she should tell him this or not.

"But I don't wanna hurt anyone!"

"I know you don't, and that's good. You don't have to hurt people" she squeezed his hand "Now go to sleep, you need to rest." Inu-Yasha was happy to comply, and immediately closed his eyes, falling asleep almost instantly.

"That's it, we're ready" Izayoi announced, having thrown the last bag onto the wooden cart. She had packed almost all of their belongings onto the one cart, anything that didn't fit or would make the cart to heavy had been left behind: she did not want to spend time selling it.

Inu-Yasha was carrying a few packs on his back and in his arms. He had offered to take as much as he could, which was a lot for a young boy. The family had no horse, so Izayoi had taken it upon herself to lug the heavy cart to their next home, wherever that would be.

"Are we going now?" Inu-Yasha asked despite the he knew the answer.

"Yes" was his mother's answer. She bent down and grabbed hold of the two handles jetting from either side of the cart. She let out a small groan as she picked it up, but quickly got used to the weight.

"Let's go Inu-Yasha" she said, looking back at him, and then turned her face toward the path and started to walk. Inu-Yasha stood still for a second, looking back at the hut that, as far as he was concerned, he had lived in forever. His eyes moved up the path and to where the village was, although he couldn't see anything over the hill.

Inu-Yasha turned around and ran to catch up with his mother, never looking back again.


End file.
